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[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1518 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1518

To amend section 310 of the Trade Act of 1974 to strengthen provisions 
    relating to the identification of United States trade expansion 
                              priorities.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 13, 2011

    Mr. Critz (for himself and Ms. Linda T. Sanchez of California) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To amend section 310 of the Trade Act of 1974 to strengthen provisions 
    relating to the identification of United States trade expansion 
                              priorities.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Trade Enforcement Priorities Act''.

SEC. 2. IDENTIFICATION OF TRADE EXPANSION PRIORITIES.

    (a) Identification of Trade Expansion Priorities.--Section 310 of 
the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2420) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 310. IDENTIFICATION OF TRADE EXPANSION PRIORITIES.

    ``(a) Identification.--
            ``(1) Identification and report.--Within 30 days after the 
        submission in each calendar year of the report required by 
        section 181(b), the United States Trade Representative shall--
                    ``(A) review United States trade expansion 
                priorities;
                    ``(B) identify priority foreign country practices 
                the elimination of which is likely to have the most 
                significant potential to increase United States 
                exports, either directly or through the establishment 
                of a beneficial precedent; and
                    ``(C) submit to the Committee on Finance of the 
                Senate and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House 
                of Representatives and publish in the Federal Register 
                a report on the priority foreign country practices so 
                identified.
            ``(2) Factors.--In identifying priority foreign country 
        practices under paragraph (1), the Trade Representative shall 
        take into account all relevant factors, including--
                    ``(A) the major barriers and trade distorting 
                practices described in the National Trade Estimate 
                Report required under section 181(b);
                    ``(B) the trade agreements to which a foreign 
                country is a party and its compliance with those 
                agreements;
                    ``(C) the medium- and long-term implications of 
                foreign government procurement plans; and
                    ``(D) the international competitive position and 
                export potential of United States products and 
                services.
            ``(3) Contents of report.--The Trade Representative may 
        include in the report, if appropriate--
                    ``(A) a description of foreign country practices 
                that may in the future warrant identification as 
                priority foreign country practices; and
                    ``(B) a statement about other foreign country 
                practices that were not identified because they are 
                already being addressed by provisions of United States 
                trade law, by existing bilateral trade agreements, or 
                as part of trade negotiations with other countries, and 
                because progress is being made toward the elimination 
                of such practices.
    ``(b) Initiation of Consultations.--By no later than the date that 
is 21 days after the date on which a report is submitted to the 
appropriate congressional committees under subsection (a)(1)(C), the 
Trade Representative should seek consultations with each foreign 
country identified in the report as engaging in priority foreign 
country practices for the purpose of reaching a satisfactory resolution 
of such priority practices.
    ``(c) Initiation of Investigation.--If the Trade Representative 
seeks consultations under subsection (b) and a satisfactory resolution 
of the priority foreign country practices involved has not been reached 
within 90 days after the date on which a report is submitted to the 
appropriate congressional committees under subsection (a)(1)(C), the 
Trade Representative shall initiate under section 302(b)(1) an 
investigation under this chapter with respect to such priority foreign 
country practices.
    ``(d) Agreements for the Elimination of Barriers.--In the 
consultations with a foreign country that the Trade Representative is 
required to request under section 303(a) with respect to an 
investigation initiated by reason of subsection (c), the Trade 
Representative shall seek to negotiate an agreement that provides for 
the elimination of the practices that are the subject of the 
investigation as quickly as possible or, if elimination of the 
practices is not feasible, an agreement that provides for compensatory 
trade benefits.
    ``(e) Reports.--The Trade Representative shall include in the 
semiannual report required by section 309(3) a report on the status of 
any investigations initiated pursuant to subsection (c) and, where 
appropriate, the extent to which such investigations have led to 
increased opportunities for the export of products and services of the 
United States.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The item relating to section 310 in the 
table of contents of the Trade Act of 1974 is amended to read as 
follows:

``Sec. 310. Identification of trade expansion priorities.''.
                                 <all>
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